On the Trail
to Recovery

The Story

It started in January 2024.

It began with a sudden bout of hearing loss in my right ear. It did go away — but the reason behind it didn't. I was diagnosed with an acoustic neuroma, a rare, benign tumor growing on the nerve that connects the ear to the brain.

At first, I was dumbfounded. For several months I wrestled with anxiety, learning about treatment options and sitting with all the what-ifs. My wife was just finishing her ENT residency — she had studied this from textbooks, sat with patients navigating it, and suddenly here it was, at home, in our life. We were both shaken in ways neither of us expected.

An acoustic neuroma grows slowly for most people. Mine didn't. At five to ten times the typical rate, surgery became the clear path forward. On January 5, 2026, Drs. Sarah Mowry and Nicholas Bambakidis at University Hospitals skillfully removed my tumor, taking tremendous care of me and my family. I ultimately lost hearing on my right side in the process. We knew that going in, and it was the best outcome we could have hoped for.

Even with my wife's training and network, I felt lost in ways that medical access couldn't fully reach. The Acoustic Neuroma Association met me there. A packet arrived at my home. Online resources. And a repository of stories from people who had been exactly where I was — stories that brought real hope when I needed it most.

The Miles

One step at a time. Then another fifty miles of them.

The body's ability to adapt is extraordinary, and the mind is stronger than we give it credit for. Since surgery I've run a trail half marathon at Mohican and the Cleveland Marathon — and on July 25th I'll toe the line at Burning River, my first 50-mile ultramarathon, through the Cuyahoga Valley.

None of these miles happened alone. Every long run had someone next to me — pacing, hydrating, talking me through the parts where my legs wanted to quit before my head did.

Mohican · Cleveland · training miles with Drew — couldn't have done any of it solo.

What's Next

July 25th is circled in orange on the kitchen calendar. Fifty miles through Cuyahoga Valley, the longest distance I've ever asked my body to cover — and the best reason I've found yet to ask for your support.